Coping with National, Corporate and Vocational Cultures

Cultural Intelligence

Summary of Cultural Intelligence. Abstract

Christopher Earley (2004)

Elaine Mosakowski (2004)

Cultural Intelligence
(CQ) is the ability to cope with national, corporate and vocational cultures
as described by Christopher Earley and Elaine Mosakowski
in HBR of October 2004. CQ is the ability to make sense of unfamiliar
contexts and then blend in. They describe three sources of CQ:

The Head /
Cognitive (rote learning about the beliefs, customs, and taboos
of foreign cultures, the approach corporate training programs tend
to favor, will never prepare a person for every situation that
arises, nor will it prevent terrible gaffes),

The Body / Physical
(you will not disarm your foreign hosts, guests, or colleagues
simply by showing you understand their culture; your actions and
demeanor must prove that you have already to some extent entered
their world), and

The Heart /
Emotional/motivational (Adapting to a new culture involves
overcoming obstacles and setbacks. People can do that only if they
believe in their own efficacy).

While it shares many of
the properties of
emotional intelligence, CQ goes one step further
by equipping a person to distinguish behaviors produced by the culture
in question from behaviors that are peculiar to particular individuals
and those found in all human beings.

Why is CQ important?In
an increasingly diverse business environment, managers must be able to
navigate through the thicket of habits, gestures, and assumptions that
define their coworkers’ differences. Foreign cultures are everywhere—in
other countries, certainly, but also in corporations, vocations, and
regions. Interacting with individuals within them demands perceptiveness
and adaptability. And the people who have those traits in abundance
aren’t necessarily the ones who enjoy the greatest social success in
familiar settings.

The people who are
socially the most successful among their peers often have the greatest
difficulty making sense of, and then being accepted by, cultural
strangers. Those who fully embody the habits and norms of their native
culture may be the most alien when they enter a culture not their own.
Sometimes, people who are somewhat detached from their own culture can
more easily adopt the mores and even the body language of an unfamiliar
host. They’re used to being observers and making a conscious effort to
fit in. Earley and Mosakowski conclude that anyone reasonably
alert, motivated, and poised can attain an acceptable CQ, recommending a
6 step approach to cultivating your CQ:

Examine your CQ strengths and weaknesses in order to
establish a starting point